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How to Use Twitter to Amplify Your Blogging

You’ve spent hours coming up with headlines and captivating, engaging blog posts that draw in your current readers and attract new ones. From on-point themes to breaking developments in your industry, you have plans to grow your readership, provide valuable information and education for your target audience, and expand your reach.

Social media can be one of your most valuable tools, if used correctly, to achieve your goals — and Twitter is becoming a leading platform for many different bloggers who were reluctant, late arrivers to the micro-blogging networking site. Twitter has been around for more than 10 years, created in 2006 by New York University undergrads who, during a brainstorming session, wanted to create a way for one individual to use an SMS service for small-group communication.

The site has grown exponentially, with about 310 million monthly active users in the first quarter of 2016— a growth of five million from the previous quarter. The numbers surrounding Twitter are impressive. Tweets fly rapidly — more than one billion are sent in less than two days. WIth the average user having more than 200 followers, opening a Twitter account can be a wise decision as you look to take your blog to the next level.

Twitter’s Blogging Benefits

Incorporating Twitter into your blog promotion and publicity has many different benefits for your blog, opening up doors to new possibilities and increased reach.

Talk to your readers: One of the most important benefits of Twitter is that it allows you to have a conversation with your readers. While they may comment on your blog, most people are far more likely to take to social media to share their remarks and opinions. When they follow you on Twitter, and you have a conversation with them, rather than just tweeting your blog posts, you allow them to get to know you, you get to know them, and they feel a stronger connection to you and your writing.

Do your research: Twitter enhances your research on several different levels. As you get to know your readers, you’ll learn more about what they like and the topics that interest them. From monitoring your most retweeted blog posts to tracking the tweets that generated the greatest interest and conversation, your readers will subtly tell you what the are looking to read.

Twitter’s advanced search option also allow you to seek out more details on your specific blog posts. By looking up the topics that you’re considering covering in your blog, you can see what others across Twitter are saying about that idea. Working with your own followers can also help you grow. Many professionals have found that asking their followers for the information they want has given them a wide variety of blog posts that they hadn’t previously considered. Asking your followers to chime in on a topic or idea and take their feedback for your blog post topics.

Connect with other professionals: Twitter offers you the unique opportunity to find and develop a professional relationship with others in your field. From the industry’s biggest thought leaders to the most vocal supporters or opponents, you can get to know the people who are spreading the word about the same fields on which you focus your blog. Begin by following these individuals, and build a relationship with them.

Amazing automation: Whether you use Twitter’s scheduling tool or a third-party app that allows you to combine a variety of social networks, you can save time and effort by scheduling your tweets in advance. There are tools that let you share your RSS feed directly on social media, tweeting a link to your blog post as soon as you hit publish.

Retweeting lets you add value: In addition to tweeting your own blog posts, you can retweet those of like-minded bloggers who you feel will give your readers information they are looking to read. Doing so will expand your blogging world twofold: your readers will appreciate your willingness to share information with them, and the bloggers you’ve shared will appreciate your willingness to introduce their blog to your followers.

Start at the Beginning: Build Your Profile

When you’re thinking about starting a Twitter account to promote your blog, there are a few crucial components that will lead to your success. Starting on the right foot from the get-go can put you in a good direction and give you a solid base on which to grow both your Twitter following and your blog readership.

Once you’ve made an account, add a profile picture. This little square defaults to an unhatched egg — which will do very little for your blog’s growth. Look for a picture that represents your brand. Your logo or a key product, a photo of the service you provide, or, if you provide the services yourself, your own photo. The photo should be set to Twitter’s photo guidelines; they recommend 400 x 400 pixels. Adding a header photo (1500×500 pixels) that includes compelling pictures and a clear call to action can encourage and engage your followers to step into your funnel by following you on Twitter, subscribing to your e-mail subscription list, or even private messaging you for more information.

There are only a few steps to follow to edit your profile; Twitter has a nice step-by-step explanation on their website. As a blogger, the most important components will be your bio, which has a limit of 160 characters, and your website. When writing your bio, be vibrant, but concise. This is your opportunity to show your personality and passions in an extremely truncated biography.

To make the most of your Twitter profile, be sure to include your blog’s address in the Web site area. If you want to grow your base, your prospective readers need to be able to find your blog.

Top 7 Tips to Amplify Your Blogging on Twitter

Stay focused: Remember why you decided to open a Twitter account — to amplify your blog. Social media, as I’m sure you know, can be a great tool for expanding your blog, and also procrastination. To increase your efficiency, stay focused on the real reason you’re on Twitter. Use your time to further your blog’s purposes rather than avoiding writing the next post.

Get to the point: Twitter only gives users 140 characters to get their point across. Since you have so few words available to you, hone your editing skills and make each word count. Use a URL shortener to condense your blog post’s address and open up a few more characters for your own words.

Schedule your tweets in advance: Take the automating advantages from above and put them to good use. Scheduling your tweets in advance lets you spend more quality time talking with your followers and less time writing tweets. Let your creative juices flow and take an hour or two to schedule your tweets for a certain period of time. When you log on each day, then, you can focus your attention on your followers.

Be creative: You could take the simple route and just tweet out the title of your blog and the short link, or you could use Twitter to its fullest capabilities. Avoid tweeting only the blog title, and use these tips to get the best results.

Keep your tweets to 10 words or less. Some of the most effective tweets are intriguing, engaging and short — very short. Finding the perfect words will take practice, as each word will be necessary, but will give you great results.

Drop names: If you share content, make sure that you give credit where it’s due. Tag the content creator by putting the @ symbol in front of their name. This makes them clickable, and shows them that you’ve tagged them. Your followers will have an easier time to find and follow a relevant resource, and the content creator will appreciate having the increased exposure.

Hashtags can help — or hurt: Be smart about your hashtag usage. Using hashtags can make your content more discoverable, and is a great way to group tweets about related topics. However, too many hashtags can hurt your brand. Find a creative hashtag and stick to one or two in each tweet for the best results.

Consistency is co-ruler: If content is king, consistency its immediate successor. Develop a plan that is centered around your goals, and work toward meeting your benchmarks and performance indicators. Improvement and growth won’t happen overnight.

To really see the biggest impact, work with a team of experienced professionals. Contact the team at WPamplify today to make your tweets and blog posts stand out and get the growth you’ve been waiting to see.